It's a Big, Big World
by circumspectual
Summary: She looked at him with the eyes of a ferocious tiger. He looked at her with the heart of a man in love. The story of how a boy met a girl and fell in love. But they were both much to stubborn to admit it. Or were they afraid of losing the only one left..?
1. In which Boy meets Girl

_A/N: 1. Sorry if the translations make no sense. I don't speak Spanish, and I have to use Google Translate._

_2. I welcome criticism, but please note that this is my first fanfiction. _

_3. I hope it won't turn out terribly confusing and asjdhajkdhsa. I love you all, and I hope you have a wonderful time reading this. _

1. Firsts

"_Tazia Albina Rivera-Zabal" _Fatima, the older Mexican sister squealed from the stairs and grinned. Tazia felt her stomach turn and she nearly gagged on the small peppermint that her little sister had given her. Quinceanera. She spat and scowled every time anyone mentioned the stupid celebration. She had even chopped the long, dark hair that she had kept for this day. She could still remember doing it, feeling the locks curl around her feet and slide down her small back. And even more prominent in her memory was the sound and face her mother had pulled. A look of utter _repugnancia_. And Tazia had loved it.

Since she was a little_ niña _Tazia had been scrapping other girls and boys on the streets. She had even resorted to getting the other kids to call her Taz, not her _'bello y majestuoso' _given name. She had never even been one for celebrations, and it itched her skin to leave as soon as she stepped down the spiralling stairs in the small house. She was greeted with gasps and wolf whistles. Her mother even dabbed her eyes and Fatima pulled little Alec, her brother, onto her shoulders. He smiled and clapped, pointing and whispering in her ear about beauty and him being so proud of his _hermana_. It made her heart swell with pride. That is, until her father clucked his tounge and became unable to tear his angry gaze from her newly cropped hair, the gentle flower tucked into the mohawk settled on her head. In an attempt to impress him she began to twirl, long and puffy colours flowing around her in a whirl.

That was when she fell to her knees, knocked off balance by the shaking and rumbling of the ground beneath her. Earthquake? _Esto no es temporada de terremotos todavía! _Taz told herself as she pulled herself up and nearly showed her mother the combat boots and completely different outfit beneath the dress. Before she could think, there was a robot busting through the sliding glass door, repeating one deadly sentance over and over.**"Kill human enslavers, Kill human enslavers."** Taz whirled around just in time to see Fatima motion for her to have her picture taken and whisper to Alec before they were both shot down. It took all her strength to pull the dress up and wipe the makeup on it, but she knew it would never be used by any other little girl who purchased it from her mother's secondhand clothing shop. She frowned and stared at Alec's little arms, tucking him into his mother's arms quickly. It was _ridículo_,yes, but it would keep him safe in heaven. Before she jumped through the small window in the kitchen, she made sure to grab a large metal fire-poker and a few knifes. She used a knife to rip at the dress until it almost showed the shorts that came to her midthigh. Now it was much easier to move in, but she could still honor this day like a good daughter. She kept that one in her hand and stopped to wipe the tears collecting in her eyes, tucking the other into her hidden belt loop. Then, she let out a battle cry and jumped from the window, metal poker thrust like a spear in front of her small body.

She would take as many of the _hijos de puta_ out as she could before the breath left her body. For Alec. For _su familia_.

oOoOo

Lieutenant Up frowned, the expression set deeply into his face. It was agonizing, waiting for the idiots on his team to assemble when there were people dying, family by family being slaughtered beneath the Starship_ Magnifier_. The Commander stepped up, rest of the team in tow. Up made a small salute, and Commander Eric smiled and said "At ease, soldier.." before lowering the man's tense arm with his hands. Eric was one of the few people who actually cared about people, and it made Up relax and prepare himself mentally to go through the agonizing pain that accompanied seeing the dead bodies. Some of fellow rangers, some of innocent people who only wanted to have fun. As the pod shakily landed on the broken earth of a small village, Up shook his head and set off in his pre-ordered direction. East. He cursed under his breath as it ran him into a large line of angry robots. This was going to be difficult and risky. To get past them with the large Zapper and his immense body heart would be hard enough. He climbed the large tree and set himself to wait.

He had a wonderful view of everything through the tree. If he stood on his toes and pulled himself almost entirely onto the branch overhead, he could see what they were all headed to. Most were headed into houses where he could hear breaking glass and screams. He could remember it exactly, the night he was scarred and broken. The night he lost it all.

_"Geoff, please! Take your sister and go!" Annie Harrison had screamed to her son. He grabbed his 9-year-old sister Kit and wiped the tears from his 13-year-old eyes. His father screamed and he could hear the metal clang and thud as his father's sword and him fell together. Annie jumped to her feet and gave her son directions to the storm cellar. She knew Geoff could hide there until the robots left and dissapeared. She smiled and kissed them on their foreheads for the last time ever, handing Kit her locket and Geoff her wedding ring, pushing them and locking the door before running into the hands of her maker. The hands of death and gentle, cradling arms of God. _

It was hard to believe it was only 7 years ago. Amazing. Every time the day came around, he would hide himself in his room. But today, the 7th anniversary, he would shake those thoughts and make a new tradition. The anniversary of his parent's death would now be celebrated with the saving of other lives. Up shook these thoughts and looked down to where a crowd of robots were. He wanted a closer look at them, because they were shaking with mechanical laughter and hitting something that kept screaming _"Carajo, me atrevo a continuar! Que todo lo que ha conseguido? Yo no soy ni su bebé, no alfeñique!" _loudly, things he didn't understand. All he knew was that it was a girl, and he was going to save her.

He was going to show himself that he could overcome this deaths to save another's life.

oOoOo

Taz could only remember ripping a robot's head off and feeling a sharp blow to her temple. But now she was awakening, her vision blurred. She was tied by a thick cable messily, but it was too tight for her usualy tactics of weakening the loose mess of rope and wriggling free. This was a robot's doing. She looked to the ground beneath her and saw the metal feet of robots. Three. _¡Mierda! Soy un fracaso. ¿Por qué creo que yo podría tener todos estos bastardos hacia abajo en el mío propio?_ Taz thought to herself as she turned around and around. There was a loud whirr and the robot looked down at her with those black, lifeless eyes. If her mouth weren't so dry, she would spit on the _idiota_. But she was only able to glare as it began to speak. **"Young fe-MALE HU-man child. I hope you en-JOY this game. Is it not a CHILD-ren game you play on birth-DAYS?" **The robots around him laughed roughly, and he began to hit her with a large plank of wood. It hit her squarely in to stomach first, then the mid-thigh, then her shoulder. The pain immediately knocked the wind from her, and made her open her mouth in silent pain. But she refused to scream, refused to give them the satisfaction of hearing her suffer.

Instead, she focused herself on screaming. A robot smacked her with her metallic hand to shut her up, but that only caused her to yell louder, spitting insults through the blood dripping from her lip. _"Carajo, me atrevo a continuar! Que todo lo que ha conseguido? Yo no soy ni su bebé, no alfeñique! Anda, bastardos. Me golpeó otra vez. Usted cree que porque soy una chica que no puedo tomar? Vamos a ver quién gana esta batalla!" _They hit her harder across the face, making her neck snap back and causing her vision to black out momentarily. Taz was unable to stop herself from halting mid-insult to cry out. Hot damn, it was excruciating. She whimpered and they laughed, hitting harder than Taz could take.

The last things she thought she would ever see were the dots of black filling her vision, the falling of the precious white lily. The petals were brushed with a soft sugar-floss pink. It was comforting, even if it was being ruined by the blood dripping from her head, her cheek, her lip. The thought of something so beautiful shining through in the worst time made her oddly calm. It was...strange. Maybe this was why she shrieked and jumped when she heard a deep American accent burst through, country drawl filling her conciousness. "YOU OVERGROWN TOASTERS, BACK AWAY FROM THE LADY!" She heard the sound of Zapper-fire and clanking metal before the robots burst before her, sparking and twitching. There was a spark that landed gently on the lily, making it burst alight with color when the polleny part flared. She knew there was hope, and she glared up at the man. The man who had saved her, and who was now shooting at the cord. It unravelled from around her, and she dropped to her feet, determined to walk in front of him. She had shown enough weakness, but her legs couldn't do it. She collapsed at his feet, giving a soft whimper and slipping into unconciousness.

oOoOo

Up burst through the fence and shot to kill. Soon he reached the small backyard and pulled himself up to see the shape of a girl wrapped tightly with cords. She looked to be about 12, but he knew she was older. Her cheeks were slender and smooth, blood running from cuts and scrapes. She looked like a goddess, glowing red and snarling with insults. It was enough to make Up's heart skip a beat before he jumped the fence, yelling "YOU OVERGROWN TOASTERS, BACK AWAY FROM THE LADY!" He fired his Zapper and screamed a battle cry that would make a Commander 10 times his size cower in fear. Soon, he had taken down all of the robots. He smiled and shot at a rope that was hanging loose, watching the girl unfurl herself and drop down. She was swift, feirce, and perfect. The elegance was soon lost as she glared over at him with such a fire that he couldn't control a smile. He offered his arms out to carry her, but she stubbornly tried to walk up to him. She was determined to get to him, but she collapsed just as she reached his feet.

Up chuckled and scooped the small girl up. She instinctively curled herself into his arms, clutching his shirt. He grabbed a small headband and an equally small ring from the ground beneath her, and pulled his radio out. "Commander Eric, this is Lieutenant Up. I'm requesting the rover sent my way. I have a survior and she's badly beaten. Put up a good fight and killed a few robots single-handedly before I reached her. She needs a med though, over." He was welcomed almost instantly with a reply of "We've got your location, and we're on our way, hang tight. Over." He smiled and kissed the girl's forehead and grabbed her freezing hands. The inside of the headband was labeled with the name 'Taz'. It was...perfect. Taz, his- wait, what? She wasn't his, he had just met her. It embarassed him, face flaring a bright scarlet. But he sighed and rethought, deciding to call her 'Taz, Goddess of the Robots." He could just see the rover coming from around the corner when she unconciously smiled and whispered 'Thank jou, Ranger.." before drifing off.

_A/N: So, what do you think? I'm a bit worried that people won't like it, but I'm by no means done. _


	2. In which Boy and Girl become friends

_ A/N: This chapter is going to specifically be from Taz's view of things. Up's will be next, I promise!_

2. Starship

_ Running. That's all her legs had been doing for an hour or two, and the robots hadn't let up. They were upon her in a matter of seconds as she tumbled to the ground. They were htting her, beating her senseless again. It hurt so bad, but it would be over in a matter of seconds. There was the head-robot, about to deliver it. The final blow... _

Taz shout up from the small cot and clutched the white sheets to her chest. Where..where was she? Oh. She was in the hospital. That estúpido ranger...he had protected her, made her seem weak. And he would pay. She tugged the IVs out of her arm with a smirk and laughed as an angry beeping erupted from the machine. She was like a spider, crawling along the walls until she made it to a bathroom. Her clothes dropped to the floor beside her change of clothes. Ranger-Guy had undoubtedly gotten those. It had probably stricken him to touch her undergarments. Hopefully. She stepped into the water and layed against the wall, letting the water beat on her skin with agonizing heat. She scrubbed the blood and dirt from her body before sqooshing a palmful of some strange green soap onto her hair. Once it was all washed out and she felt clean, she jumped from the water and threw on the white tank, camo pants, and black she tied her back with a small bandana. Red, red for fire, red for the blood shed.

Before Taz counld even think, she was letting the swelling of tears fall onto her knuckles as she laced her boots. She sniffed and wiped them away with her golden brown arm. The tears streaked once, then they stopped. _'Duro, duro, duro!' _She repeated inside her head. She would be a block of steel, never showing emotion or pain. She stepped from the bathroom, water dripping into her headband off her hair. It would dry in every direction, make people wonder. Taz stalked off down the hall and past the nurses on a hunt for her. Ranger-Guy had to be here somewhere, but _la nave espacial fue tan grande. _She would never find him on this gigantic ship. Taz brushed her hand along the glass wall of the gym but she stopped. "It is dat ranger...dat _cabrón_!" She shoved a few older men aside as she growled, setting into a run. She was stopped by the immense crowd of people surrounding the boxing ring. He was in there, and she had to fight him. "Who's next? Anyone got the balls to fight me?" Taz's eyes flickered. Before she knew it, she was yelling _"¿Qué hay de mí? _What about me?_" _She stepped through the people and cracked her neck, Ranger-Guy chuckling above her in the ring.

He was laughing. _**At her. **_She glared up at him with eyes full of pure fire. There was nobody, _nadie _that laughed at her. As stupid and small as she looked, she stepped up with confidence. Taz vowed that she would show them all just how tough someone like her could be. Ranger-Guy smiled toothinly and said "Well, ladies and gentleman, we've got our own little resident robo-killer! Remember that one I was tellin' y'all about?" There was a sound of admiration to the tiny girl, sienna skin glowing under the fluorescent lights hanging in the gym. There was a fire set in those narrowed eyes, golden colors floating around int the sea of brown. Her hands swung together in two fists, a small smile playing on her lips. The Ranger-Guy looked down at her, approaching her with caution. "An' what might yer name be, young'in?" She scoffed and looked into his dodger eyes, pointing an angry finger up at him. "Jou listen to me now, jou _hijo de puta, _I will tell jou my name. But jou better promise me one thing. Jou will _**never **_come and make me, _más fuerte en mi familia, _look like some sad, spayed 'ittle puppy! Jou had no right to bust in dere and save me. Jou...jou will pay." She poked her finger into his chest and pushed him a good few inches from where he stood before. "Taz." He looked puzzled, but she only gave him a questioning look. She was asking for his name. "_Mi nombre es Taz. ¿Cuál es tu nombre?_ Jour name?" He sputtered a bit before answering her. "Up."

She ran at him full force just as he uttered his 'name.' She pushed him back against the ropes, kicking him angrily in the stomach. He let out a grunt of pain before running at her just as she fluttered out of sight. She was surprising, aiming at him with elbow jabs, uppercuts, roundhouse kicks, headbutts. Taz aimed to kill, aimed to destroy. Occasionally, she would get a few hits in, but he was blocking her attacks. A few times, they would come face to face, nose to nose. Up would smile, but she would kick or punch him and he would be on the defense again. Suddenly, Taz took a blow to her head and fell flat, wincing and not getting back up. Up panicked and stooped down to her side, timidly putting a hand to her back. She flipped backward and kicked him squarely in the back, pinning him flat with her foot. Just as he was about to get back up, she kicked him in the chest, knocking him flat and breathless. _"Tres." _She said loudly nwhen a few seconds had gone by. Taz turned her back from Up, from the crowd. Just as she was about to leave, she whirled around. "Jou have de stupidest name. De hell kind of name es Up?" She said it with a fake sweetness. Such sweetness, then fury, made everyone in the gym begin to yell and whoop. She could just make out Up saying, as the door closed, "It's been 4 years since I've been taken down...And I got taken out by a butterfly!"

oOoOo

Taz laid back on the soft earth beneath her, staring into the star-filled sky of space. The ship's beach simulator was amazingly realistic, salty breezing lifting her hair and sand filling the spaces between her toes. She sighed and rolled over onto her stomach, beginning to roll down a dune of sand. No sooner had she stopped rolling did a strange figure join her on the beach. She hid herself behind a large plank of dritwood. It was the Ranger-Guy...Up. He looked both ways, scanning for people, before moving to open a little composition notebook. But...there was something familar about that notwbook. It was hers! Taz stood up and began to run in the sand, careful to pad her steps with holes in the sand. He mumbled as he read aloud. "Uh...Lemme see...Today is my Keeseeyera. Everytime someone talks about it, I spit fire. I want to be a ranger, my doesn't me mahdrey..?..understand?" He continued reading, going on about how she had cut her hair, soon finishing the entry. Before he could get to a particularly interesting part about her first day on the ship, she jumped from behind him into his arms. Sitting atop the notebook, she pressed her nose gently to his and whispered, "_Sería prudente a la mente de su negocio." _

Of course. He doesn't speak Spanish, the _confundido_ idiot. She immediately regretted pushing her face into his..With much fire, she snapped to angry attention. "It would be wise to mind jour bidness." Her eyes smirked as she looked into his. Those eyes. For some reason, being here on the beach in peaceful silence, it constricted something in her heart to be so close. He was moving closer to her, and she was moving closer to him. She wrapped her lags around his waist and rested her chin on his shoulder. Words bubbled quietly from somewhere inside her. "I apologize for beating jou...jou are wonderful..and jou saved my life, Up.." He just smiled and whispered gently back. "I was goin' easy. And I am happy to have saved a fireball like you.." His compliment caused color to rise in her cheeks. Anger to his claim of easing his powere melted like butter, and she smiled. A small, timid smile played on her trembling lips. No. She wouldn't cry in front of some self-righteous Starship Ranger.

In a matter of moments, she was in his arms, being rocked from side to side as shivers and sobs wracked her core. He was so warm...so gentle. It always seemed that he could see her at her weakest. She reached up and kissed his cheek gently, salty tears tickling his neck as they slid from her eyes. "Muchas gracias...teniente Up." She wiped her eyes on his shirt and pulled him up, down to the water. He was easy to push into the shallows, easy to ride as a raft into the knee-deep (Midthigh for Taz.) water surrounding them. "Up?" He grunted a reply, rowing himself out into the water. "I want you to teach me. To help me be a ranger so I can fight alongside you. We can be...a team." She barely whispered it. It nearly slipped away into the wind and waves as well. "Um..you want to train in combat?" She nodded, laying across his chest and humming a few strains of a salsa tune. He nodded and layed back. "Hey. Get up before you get sick! Let's go and watch The Karate Kid. Y'know. The good one, with Jackie Chan!" Taz grinned and began wading through the shallows to get to the shore, to the familiar comfort of a movie. To the place where Up was there, and she was safe.


	3. In which Boy and Girl succeed

_A/N: Oh god guys! School has been mondo hectic lately! I'm so sorry I've left you hanging, but it's Thanksgiving break. Here I am to deliver the newest chapter, my babies. I missed writing, so so much. This chapter is about Up, mainly because I want to practice with him more. I'm trying not to focus too much on Taz...but if it sucks, I'll take it down and make it different. Thanks to everyone who's commented and reviewed so far, you're the reason I write! So, behold this brain child of American Dad and a bunch of food. _

3. Best Friends

Up looked over at the clock as he stood up and cracked his back. It was 3:30, the time he was usually heading to the gym. He would be there, too, if it weren't for the tiny Latina girl sprawled out on his couch. The same girl who had cried in his arms, who had thrown salt and popcorn into his eyes. (Well, he was the one who started it!) The same girl who had even made him snort Spacey-Cola! out his nose. Up sighed as he lifted her into his arms and kissed her forehead. She instantly wrapped around his neck and began mumbling in thick and incoherent Spanish. Suddenly, it hit him. There in his mind was the most perfect idea in the world. Time to go take a dip in the pool. He hoisted Taz over his shoulder and cleared his throat quietly, hoping that she wouldn't wake up until he put his plan into action. Up soon closed his door with a silent hiss and began to pad down the hall, a bag full of clothes in one arm, Taz in the other. He could just see the pool entrance when a Commanding officer rounded the corner. Up traced his steps backwards and flattened himself against a wall. No matter how much of a favorite he was, there was supposed to be nobody but the night-class up at this hour. When he finally passed, Up slid into the room silently and breathed the sickly sweet smell of chlorinated water.

"Tazzy, wake up!" Up whispered is his best 'good morning!' voice. Taz had just opened her eyes and muttered _"Que?" _when Up yelped and shoved her into the water. Taz spluttered to the surface, her eyes no longer sleep-blurred. Up rose after her and began laughing his head off. He could practically see the steam rising from her skin as she dove into the water and sped like a bullet over to him. She had such a predictable temper, as proven when Up pulled her into a headlock beneath the water. She kicked and screamed (Or rather, let out angry bubbles.), but nope. There would be no way he'd let her win this time. He lifted her screaming figure from the water and balanced her on his hands high. "Damn it, Taz! You just gotta be so loud, don'cha?" He threw her into the deeper end as she let out a rage-feuled scream that was soon drowned. She jumped from the water and began attacking him. Her adrenaline level was lowering, so she soon grew tired. Soon she dropped onto the steps and held her hands up, silently surrendering. He smiled and pulled her tiny frame into his arms as he stepped out of the chilly water. Water dripped from both of their shivering frames. Up pushed her into a chair and threw a pair of his clothes, a pair that had been shrunken beyond help by a fucked up dryer. It was still a bit big for her, but it would work for the night. He strode into the locker room, watching her slowly do the same after she jogged and shook herself loosely to get warm. '_Damn, she's tiny. And adorable and perfect and...probably getting hypothermia because of you, you huge asshole! What were you thinking!' _Up thought to himself as he stood in front of the mirror with his head in his hands, feeling like a total dick. He was definitely not thinking about betraying his sacred code..No! He was **not **going to let everything he'd worked so hard to get slip away because of some attractive lil' runt! Up cracked his neck and stepped from the dressing room, waiting patiently for Taz before walking her back to her room.

oOoOo

Now that the cat was away, the mouse could play. Up began attacking the nearest punching bag, beating it senseless. Sand began to pour out the sides until he was beating nothing but a Dead-God damn potato sack. Well, shit. That was gonna be a little hard to explain if someone came into the gym. Up decided that he would just stay there all night, train until he was a pile of exhaustion. As he grew bored of punching, Up was absently throwing the practice knives into a row of moving dummies. They were small, frail, agile. Just like her...that dumb girl who kept creeping her way into his thoughts. Did she have any idea that he was constantly thinking about her? Did she have any clue that everything inside him was churning like butter, wanting ever so much to be with her always? She made his mind race and his heart pound. "Fuckin' bullshit!" He roared, flinging a knife so hard it cut irs way through about 6 metal targets. Up cursed and shook his head as he sat back against the wall, chugging the bottle of water in his hand. 5:17, almost time to take Taz to Eric. To ask him if he could bring a runt-of-the-litter Latina into the Academy. 2 Years before the age limit. And a girl, no less. If he was accepted, she would be first girl accepted into the academy early. 20 minutes of cleaning himself later, Up was feuling himself with a strong cup of coffee and a raisin bagel. Up rapped smartly on the door of Taz's room. She muttered a string of curses in her native tongue and yelled out her room combination. Refugee Number 94328 rolled off her bed as he entered. She smiled sleepily before furrowing her eyebrows in confusion. _"¿Por qué estás aquí? ¿Y por qué usted está en un traje? ¿Tiene usted un vestido en esa bolsa? _Color me _disgustó." _Yes, there was a dress. She was either going to wear it or be eternally damned to 'The Space-Days Foster Home!'. He had asked his sister Kit to pick it up for the petite girl. It was a soft blue sundress, accents of white and yellow adorning the straps and decorating the bottom. Persusasively innocent, but he was doubting his sister. Maybe she was wrong and innocence wasn't the angle they should go for. She wanted to study in combat, after all. But maybe Kit was right. If so, she would have to show them up, show them that 'The Girl in the Blue Dress' was more than just a sweet face and tough attitude.

_Taz stood in front of the mirror, her raven hair strewn around her face. It was much less intimidating than her normal mohawk. It was loose and flowy on her head, long strands set in perfect corkscrew curls. There was a small blue lily that stood out from the black silk surrounding it. "I look like a little girl!" Was this really how she wanted to show herself in front of a man who was to decide her fate. Taz shook her head and, despite the little voice telling her that it was a bad idea, dropped the dress to the floor_.

Up waited anxiously in Eric's office. Taz was running a bit...late. If you can call 15 minutes a bit. Suddenly, someone curtly knocked on the door. Eric smiled and alowed them entrance with the click of button. In strode Taz, wearing an outfit he'd seen more than once. White tanktop, camo pants, combats, dog tags. The only thing missing was her bandana, replaced with a cherry-red rose. The rose matched the fire in her eyes, the will to please. She was also wearing a hint of makeup, makeup that made her look stronger and older. Up's blood boiled and he stood up, clearing his throat in obvious annoyance. Eric only smiled, stepping around his desk to shake hands with the spunky woman in front of him. "Hello, Miss. Tazia Albina Rivera-Zabal. How are you?" Taz replied sweetly. Up sighed and ran a hand through his greying hair. "I-I'm sorry about thi-" He was cut off by Eric's hand. "Now Tazia, tell me, what is it you want from te academy?" Up gave her a pleading look, willing her to remember what they had rehearsed. Taz smirked over at him. "Okay, ese. Here's the non-bullshitting truth that jou want. I wanna be in de academy so I can get back at does _hijo de puta_ robots. De only way I can do dat is if I get into this _academia _and graduate. Dat said, jou want to speech dat _Teniente_ Up wanted me to recite for jou?" Up's cheeks burned crimson. The heat dissolved as he pulled at his tie. "Oh...well, um...I'm so sorry, Eric. She's just a little-" _"¡Cállate! ¿Usted no cree en mí. _Do jou not believe in me? I am ten times de man dat jou are!" Up growled and gripped her shoulders, making her look at him. "You listen here now, you little...Taz, are you okay?" The girl choked back the tears welling up in her eyes. Why couldn't he just see that she wanted someone to believe in her, someone to tell her that she was doing a damn good job. Eric clapped a hand on Taz's small back, pulling her into a stiff hug. "I think you've shown your worth here. Welcome to the academy, Cadet. I trust you won't let us down." Eric waved a hand and dismissed them, smiling genuinely. Taz was...she'd done it. Up ushered her unto the hall, then swept her off her feet and spun her around. "There she is, my little cadet!" He yelled and carried her to his room. They would watch their favorite movie together. A movie in celebration.

_A/N: Did you guys like it? I've been working on it for like 2 hours because tumblr is distracting. Damnit, tumblr. Reviews are appreciated!_


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